UPI NewsTrack Quirks in the News

WHEATON, Ill., Jan. 25 (UPI) -- An Illinois man who said he was driving 111 mph in a 45 mph zone because he was in a hurry to have sex was sentenced to a work alternative program.

Zachary Ramirez, 21, of Naperville pleaded guilty to reckless driving and possession of 2.5 grams or less of marijuana Thursday in DuPage County Circuit Court in Wheaton and he was ordered to serve five days in the DuPage County Sheriff's Work Alternative Program, which allows convicts to work in the community to avoid jail time, the Naperville Sun reported Friday.

Ramirez was pulled over around 2 a.m. April 21 when he was spotted driving 111 mph in a 45 mph zone.

"When asked why he was traveling so fast, [Ramirez] replied he was trying to go have sex with a girl he liked," a police spokesman said.

The suspect was found to be carrying a small amount of marijuana, police said.

Chicken council says Super Bowl covered

WASHINGTON, Jan. 25 (UPI) -- The National Chicken Council in Washington said rumors of a chicken wing shortage ahead of the Super Bowl are unfounded.

Bill Roenigk, chief economist and market analyst for the National Chicken Council, said this week in the 2013 "Wing Report" that Super Bowl watchers shouldn't have too much trouble finding chicken wings to enjoy along with the Feb. 3 showdown between the San Francisco 49ers and Baltimore Ravens, Tribune Newspapers reported Friday.

"The good news for consumers is that restaurants plan well in advance to ensure they have plenty of wings for the big game," Roenigk wrote.

However, Roenigk cautioned wing-lovers not to wait until the last minute.

"If you're planning to cook your own wings, I wouldn't advise being in line at the supermarket two hours before kickoff," he wrote.

The report said U.S. consumers are expected to eat 1.23 billion chicken wing "portions" during Super Bowl weekend.

"To put that in perspective," the report said, "if 1.23 billion wing segments were laid end to end, they would stretch from Candlestick Park in San Francisco to M&T Bank Stadium in Baltimore ... 27 times."

Man revived after being declared dead

KARLSTAD, Sweden, Jan. 25 (UPI) -- A Swedish man told the National Health Board he was declared dead and later revived when his girlfriend noticed he was still breathing.

The 31-year-old Varmland County man said in a medical malpractice report to the National Health Board he was declared dead 30 minutes after arriving at the emergency room in May 2012, The Local.se reported Friday.

The report did not give the reason for the man being brought to the hospital.

The man's girlfriend said she noticed him breathing when she was brought into the room to say goodbye and doctors began resuscitation attempts at her insistence.

The woman said a doctor told her about 20 minutes later doctors no longer believed him to be brain dead, but there was a chance of permanent damage.

The man said he has suffered memory problems, balance issues and recurring nightmares since the incident. He said the problems have prevented him from being able to resume his job installing ventilation.

"Lucky for me that my girlfriend was there, without her I wouldn't be here today," the man wrote.

Three charged in home lottery scam

MARSEILLE, France, Jan. 25 (UPI) -- Three people in France have been charged with fraud for selling tickets for a drawing to win homes the organizers did not own.

Leonardo Simpatico, a property agent from Aix-en-Provence, was arrested this week along with his daughter and a notary in Aix-en-Provence after collecting a total $5.39 million from 40,000 people who were told they were being entered in a drawing to win one of six houses or apartments -- and that their money would be refunded if they didn't win -- The Local.fr reported Friday.

The winners soon discovered Simpatico had not completed the deals to purchase any of the homes in question.

The suspects, who were being held in Marseille, were charged with fraud, operating an illegal lottery and illegal betting.

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